for acknowledging the divine miffion of Jefus, than he could hope to accomplish thefe ends without them. And the miracles, which John might have performed under these obvious restrictions, would have been so far from involving the Jews in doubt and perplexity, about the difference between the character of Jefus and His own, that his repeated declarations of himfelf, as being only the Merah's Forerunner; and of Jefus as being the true Mefhah; ftrengthened by Jefus's more aftonishing works, and fuperior all-powerful manner of performing them; would have induced the Jews to acquiefce with greater readinefs, and certainty, in Their diftinct pretenfions. For, as John's divine authority would, by this means, have been more affuredly eftablished; fo it was to be expected, that his peremptory, explicit declarations of Jefus's peculiar character, as well as his own, would be more implicitly believed.

How then can it be conceived, that They, who, if impoftors, were mafters of fo complete an art of working wonders, as no other impoftors ever poffeffed; and who depended ultimately for fuc¬ cefs, upon the ufe they fhould make of thefe wonderous works, more than any thing elfe, as Jefus himself often declared; how can it be believed They could agree, that John fhould entirely abstain from making the leaft use of them, when they

would

would have been fo immediately capable of doing the greateft fervice to the caufe? Nothing lefs than the most evident danger refulting from them, could perfuade an impoftor to forego the pleafure of putting in practice fo exquifite an art; and in the cafe before us, instead of any ill confequence to fear from it, there was a very evident, and strong reafon for John's making ufe of it. The benefit to be expected from it, was fo great, that they must both have been exceedingly defirous to make John's application of it fubfervient to the reft of their plot; and the expedients, by which this might have been done, were so obvious and eafy, that they could not escape their obfervation.

HAD John and Jefus been impoftors, we should therefore undoubtedly have received accounts of many miracles performed by John; though neither fo numerous, nor aftonishing as thofe of Jefus himself. And had this ever caufed the Jews to enquire, in a manner fimilar to what they did upon another occafion; why He performed these miracles, if he was not the Merah? His answer was ready, and would have been of fingular fervice to the whole joint undertaking.-I indeed (he would have faid) do perform those miraculous works, which have excited your admiration, and caused this enquiry; but there ftandeth one among R 2

you,

you, whom ye know not; He it is, who will perform much greater works before you than I am able to do. But thefe works, that I do, are abundantly fufficient to convince you of my own divine authority; and confequently to fatisfy you, that He alone, whom I have fo often pointed out to you as fuch, is the true Meffah; as well as that I myfelf am his immediate Forerunner.

SEC

SECTION II.

The different external characters of John and Jefus confidered.

IF John and Jefus were joint deceivers, it is certain, not only from the nature of their defign itfelf, but likewife from thofe very diftinct and remarkable kinds of life, they Each adopted; that they did not begin to fhew themselves to the people, without having firft deliberately agreed to affume fuch particular characters, as appeared to them best calculated for promoting their plot. For befides, that this was a matter of fuch importance as they could not negle&t; the characters, they actually appeared in, were fo extraordinary in themselves, and fo directly oppofite to each other, that they could not proceed from any thing but a preconcerted defign.

FROM the very beginning John practifed all imaginable aufterity; making his first public appearance in a covering of camels hair, tied with a leathern girdle; living with the most fingular abftemioufnefs, upon locufts, and wild honey; and fe

cluding himself, in great

measure, from the comNor did he himself only

mon intercourse of life. most rigorously adhere to all the religious rites and ordinances, practised by the feverest sect among the Jews, the Pharifees; but he obliged all his own difciples, who affociated at all with him, to do the fame. Whence the Pharifees themselves put the question to Jefus; " Why do the difciples of "John faft often, and make prayers, and likewife "the difciples of the Pharifees: but thine eat and "drink?" Such was the folitary and mortified life of John, from the beginning of his public appearance in the character of the Baptift.

JESUS, on the contrary, was the reverse of all this. He affumed a character, not only void of all feverity and reftraint, but fpent his whole time in a most uncommon manner, in seeking the fociety of, and converfing familiarly with, all ranks and orders of the people. And fo far was he from complying with the fuperftitious ceremonial of any of the prevailing fects, but more especially the rigid Pharifees; or exhorting his disciples to conform, in the leaft, to them; that, on all occafions, he himself constantly broke through them, and both publicly and privately inveighed against them. Society was what he

Luke v. 33,

fought